Before their game against Wisconsin, they were the Fighting Rece Davises, per ESPN’s Joey Galloway. Smart, capable and well-coached, but not possessing the traits needed to keep up with the Badgers and their “top-tier” talent.
After a Big Ten Championship loss to Ohio State, it was all about Justin Fields and his inability to process reads with the required speed (an idiotic narrative that has now been proven false on multiple occasions), not about a Northwestern team being better than what everyone outside of Evanston had given them credit for.
Even prior to the Citrus Bowl vs Auburn, the Tigers and their “SEC speed” were counted on to simply outrun a ‘Cats squad that had been better the entire season.